Productive fishing is the norm year-round at the Santee Cooper lakes, but March is the month when many popular species are on the move, and trophy-sized specimens are available. The primary exception is bream, but they’re moving shallow soon, and shellcrackers often begin to make an appearance late in March and early April.
But the fishing for crappie and stripers is on fire during March.
Crappie action
Spring crappie fishing peaks during March, when fish are on their annual migration to the shallows to spawn. Depending on water temperature, some may spawn in shallow areas as early as February. But crappies don’t all spawn at the same time, so this month is prime time to see a lot of crappies in pre-spawn and spawn mode, and late in the month, many will be in post-spawn. These fish will be available in multiple modes this month, with plenty in full pre-spawn mode and available via multiple tactics.
Capt. Stacey Weatherford said March is all about options, and anglers can choose the technique to catch crappie.
“Many fishermen longline troll during March, and it’s productive because it enables fishermen to cover a lot of water effectively,” he said. “Spider rigging is an excellent technique; fishermen can target crappie at various locations with precise depth and speed control, which are usually crucial to success. And using forward-facing sonar (FFS) is extremely effective at Santee Cooper when fish are roaming, or holding tight to specific cover, such as brush, trees, or stumps.”
Weatherford (SW Guide Service, 854-206-0199) guides out of Blacks Camp and said his guiding tactics are spider rigging and single-pole fishing using FFS.
Electronics
“Using my electronics, I’ll find where crappies are positioned on a specific day and target fish using a single pole technique by dropping the jig or bait right on them,” he said. “Both are highly effective, precise ways to put slabs in the boat. During a day, we’ll be able to hook many fish.”
Although he doesn’t longline troll as much as he used to, he said it’s very effective if the angler works a pattern with it.
“I pay attention to speed and depth when trolling because they’re crucial. So watch your graph to see how deep fish are when caught, and the speed of the troll,” he said. “Even without FFS, anglers can stay on the right pattern and put a lot of fish in the cooler. And remember, when using any of these tactics, crappie often suspend. That’s where electronics can help significantly.”
This time of year, he said crappie move up creeks and drainages in shallow coves to spawn. They have an affinity for suspending relatively shallow in the water column, but will also suspend shallow over deep water.
Successful spring fishing is often more about finding the fish on a given day.
“If you put the right jig or live minnow in front of them, the odds are good they’ll eat it,” he said.
Striper Strategy
By March, the striper fishing switches gears from feeding fish, to stripers with the propagation of the species on their mind. Stripers will still chew on something; blueback herring is a prime offering, whether live or cut. The annual spawning run of saltwater herring is underway, and these fish are moving through the lakes. Bait dealers catch and sell them. Pack’s Landing at the upper end of Lake Marion usually has live herring for sale after the bait-catching season opens in March.
The upper end of Lake Marion is a prime area to fish during the pre-spawn. Stripers migrate up the Santee River and then fork into the Congaree or Wateree Rivers to continue their upstream migration.
On their journey up the river, stripers prefer chunks of cut herring, but fishing live bait can be effective. By April, while some stripers are still heading up the river, many are migrating back down the river, and using live bait is often best.
Guides like Andy and Steve Pack at Pack’s Landing (803-452-5514) typically use an assortment of both types of bait to cover any possibility.
Be the first to comment